Together We Bloom
by The Forgotten Nobody
Summary: "Holy shit. You have a Power." Evan's body seizes. Just as his chest collapses in on itself, the flowers instantly shrivel and die. His eyes snap open and Evan nearly throws up when he sees just who's discovered him. Tree bros.


_This was supposed to be short and it grew without my permission. This was inspired by a powers AU prompt I received on AO3._

* * *

 _No, no, no, no_

Evan's eyes are shut tight, his nails digging so hard into his palms they threaten to draw blood. The floor is the only thing that offers stability as Evan feels his heart rate quicken, his breathing shallow, and the familiar tingling through his body that suggests his Power is close to expressing without his consent.

 _Please. Not now._

He can't have survived the majority of high school only to lose control now. He's dealt with so many incidents, so many close calls, that he can't have them all be for nought. He can't have it be because of a single push when he's been through worse. That would be cruelly unfair, even for him.

"Hey, let me help you up. Are you okay?"

The gently spoken words somehow manage to slip into Evan's mess of a brain. He takes a steadying breath before daring to open his eyes, shoulder's relaxing slightly in relief when he confirms that so far, he's in the clear. Though his Power sparks again when he sees whose above him, Zoe Murphy's face is creased only in kind concern.

Realising he's probably been staring at her gormlessly for too long, he cautiously takes her proffered hand. Fortunately, she doesn't register the energy that's still thrumming beneath her fingertips; instead, with strength Evan didn't know she possessed, she easily helps lift him from the floor. Though his legs are shaky, they thankfully still work. Just because things are okay this second does not mean he doesn't still need to get out of there quick.

"I'm sorry about my brother," Zoe begins but Evan, for once in his life, interrupts her. He can panic about that later because right now he has bigger things to worry about.

"I-I've got to go. Thank you."

He doesn't even bother to look back as he leaves, almost running out of the school. He still has 10 minutes until he needs to be in class. 10 minutes will do. It has to.

Outside, there is a small grove on the outskirts of the school grounds. Evan dives into it, falling to his knees and clawing his fingers into the dirt. Almost instantly, weeds begin to sprout around his hands. Grounded in his connection with the earth, a sense of calm gradually envelopes Evan and he sighs in gratitude.

It's been a while since Evan was so worried over his Power. It figures, however, considering it's the first day of school after a bad summer. Evan had already been feeling on edge, Connor pushing him…it had just been the tipping point. He's lucky that he has this space for himself. He's not sure what he would have done otherwise.

Evan stays as he is for as long as he dares, the weeds gradually turning into lavender, providing one of Evan's favourite scents. Though he still feels unsettled, it's more manageable than it was and for Evan, that's the most important thing.

He can't ever lose control.

* * *

Instead of going to the computer lab to finish off his Dear Evan Hansen, Evan heads to the grove in his free period. Those 10 minutes may have helped but he hadn't had enough time to lose himself to the sensations, to fully relax. He can't get that just looking through a window.

It's risky, exposing his Power not just once but twice in a day in broad daylight, but Evan has been coming to this spot ever since he was a Freshman, a time in his life where he'd needed it at least once a week. He's never been caught yet and Evan likes to think the trees protect him, moving ever so slightly when someone approaches, shielding him from view.

Today, Evan uses his backpack as a pillow and leans it against the trunk of a tree. He's not sure how exactly his, or anyone else's for that matter, power's work but he knows that when he's outside, when he's alone with nature, he's grounded in a way he is nowhere else. He feels _right_ , like a missing part of him is filled. It's a mutual relationship too, since more often than not; the wildlife will listen to him. They'll take the nutrients Evan's Power provides to grow, blossoming even in environments that should be inhabitable for them.

Sometimes, they even respond without active prompting. Without his Power, Evan is pretty sure he would have received more than a couple of bruises when he let go of that tree. He could have sworn when he looked down and made that decision, there had been no branch in his way to break the fall.

He may not have been grateful at the time, and sometimes he still isn't, but overall, he knows that the tree had only been looking out for him and that has to mean something.

Evan closes his eyes and places his palms flat on the ground. The earth shifts beneath them inquiringly and he provides a bit of Power, along with only the will that it grows what it pleases. A quick glimpse shows that rainbows of various flowers are springing up and he smiles. His Power might defy everything he's learnt in biology but with results like these, he doesn't want to question it. He could only imagine what people would make him do if he did begin asking que-

"Holy shit. You have a Power."

Evan's body seizes. Just as his chest collapses in on itself, the flowers instantly shrivel and die. His eyes snap open and Evan nearly throws up when he sees just who's discovered him.

It's Connor Murphy. The guy who only that morning screamed at him and pushed him over. The guy who clearly doesn't like him and so would clearly not have a problem telling everyone what he's just seen.

His life is over.

Evan doesn't realise he's hyperventilating until there's a hand hovering above him uncertainly.

"Fuck. Shit. Breathe. I didn't mean to…I'm not going to tell anyone. Okay? I'm not, I…I have 'em too. C'mon, fucking breath. God dammit I don't need you dying on me."

Despite his heart trying to convince him otherwise, Evan gasps out, "'M n-not gonna d-die. I…" He takes a few gulping breathes of air and the black spots gradually clear from his vision.

His brain then hones in on what Connor said.

"Y-you have a Power too?" He asks in wonder.

Connor pales a little, perhaps only now realising what he's just admitted, but his own worry quickly seems to abate when he looks back at Evan who probably still looks ready to pass out.

Sort of feels it too.

"Yeah," Connor admits roughly. "I do. So I'm not gonna tell anyone, okay? Now you could just tell them about me."

"O-okay… I promise, I won't."

"…Cool." A flash of indecision crosses Connor's face and then he's suddenly sitting beside Evan. "So…plants."

A quick glance assuring him there'll be no more surprise visitors, Evan bemusedly replies, "Uh, yeah. I can…well, I guess make them do what I want. Make them appear. Help them grow."

"Huh," Connor begins fiddling with strands of grass. "So you could make a whole tree, just like that?"

"Um. Not exactly. I imagine that would take too much energy." As much as Evan loves to use his Power, fear of being found will always win out against using it too carelessly and so he has never properly tested his limits. The closest he's come was when he'd been determined fill the garden with as many sunflowers as possible when he was seven. He'd passed out from exertion and his dad had been the one to find him lying in the half sunflower-covered garden. Not long after that, his dad had left. "I prefer sticking to creating flowers and helping the trees when they need it," Evan follows up.

"Hm," Instead of looking judgemental like Evan assumed he would (he knows all too well what some people think about boys who like flowers) Connor just looks curious. Something Evan's also feeling himself.

"So, uh, what is your Power? If-if you don't mind me asking."

Connor hesitates. "I guess fair's fair," he mutters. A sardonic smirk replaces his frown. "I can cause explosions." He snorts. "I am a literal ticking time bomb."

Evan blinks, not at all sure what to say to that. He hates that his first thought is that he's surprised the school is still standing.

"Yeah, that expression is another reason I keep mine quiet," Connor says dryly and he's just as good at hiding back hurt as Evan himself is.

"Sorry I…was just surprised. I've not heard of that Power before." But then again, he's not heard of many Powers, at least not in real life. While there are people out there who embrace their Power and the attention that goes along with it, the majority keep quiet. It helps that no biological marker for having a Power has been found yet. Evan is constantly, quietly terrified of the day it is.

"For good reason I bet," Connor says, his façade falling. "Fuck. Look, I just came here to tell you I'm sorry for pushing you over. I'll leave you to your… plants, whatever."

"Wait." Evan doesn't mean to physically stop him but sometimes, his Power does what it wants and while the daisies aren't actually strong enough to hold Connor down, the way they curl around his shoes stuns the boy long enough for Evan to speak. "It's just-it's nice, knowing I'm not…that there's someone else here like me. So, um, if you ever want to, I dunno, talk about it or something we…could?"

Save his mom, Evan hasn't been able to talk about his Power to anyone. These last 5 minutes with Connor have been better than some of his therapy sessions.

Connor stares at him. "You'd actually wanna do that. With _me_?"

Admittedly, with his prickly attitude and their bad start, Connor might not have been his first choice but the hint of vulnerability that laces the question is what makes Evan determinedly say, "Only if you want to. I don't…didn't mean to make this weird."

Connor rips a blade of grass, rolling it between his thumb and index finger. "Do you normally hang out here?"

Evan shrugs. "If the weather's nice and it's quiet."

"Cool."

It's nearly time for next period so Evan begins to get ready, helping Connor out of the mess of plants that have suddenly sprouted around and on top of his feet. He's embarrassed, and a little concerned, about his lack of control but he figures it's been a very unusual day and maybe his Power senses that he's okay around Connor.

Evan hopes to see Connor again but when they don't make plans to meet again, he decides not to hold his breath.

* * *

Two days later, Connor doesn't so much as come join Evan as he does wait for him during lunch. He's now extremely glad he managed to lose Jared just before coming outside because he's really not sure how he would explain the currently smoking Connor Murphy sitting in his spot.

"Bad day," Connor explains before Evan even greets him. "Shit. Am I, like, killing your friends?" His bloodshot eyes narrow on his blunt.

Evan's not been around anyone on drugs before, at least not on purpose, and so it's with more caution than normal that he sits down and shakes his head.

"They're not my friends, not exactly. While they're alive, they're not sentient in the same way we are. I think it sometimes can feel like they are but only because through my Power, they can tell what I want, even if my brain hasn't caught up yet."

Hit with the memory of how the flowers had attacked Connor's shoes, he blushes. Thankfully, Connor still looks too concerned about the blunt.

"Isn't it a bit risky? Smoking so close to the school?"

"Nah. You said no one sees you playing around with the grass here so they should see me with mine. Not going in after anyway."

"You're skipping?"

"No, I'm floating." He pauses. "Yeah. You ever tried it?"

"Um, no."

"Wanna try it?"

The repercussions of that spiral in Evan's mind, eventually settling on his mom getting fired and his expulsion.

"No thanks."

"Whatever," Connor shrugs.

They sit in silence, Evan beginning to eat his lunch but eventually it begins to get to him.

"Do you wanna talk about it? Your bad day?"

Connor takes a long drag before replying. "Got pissed off at my dad and broke a photo frame. They nearly kept me home for the day."

"Oh." Honestly, Evan wasn't expecting an answer. "Does that happen a lot, you breaking things?"

"When I'm angry. So a lot at home," he mutters darkly. "Only ever happened once at school."

"Really?"

"Yeah, elementary school, Ms Pickerman's class. She was, I dunno, doing something shitty. Saying something and I got real mad and then I just saw it, the printer it…it sparked and I knew it was my Power. Couldn't have anyone else figure it out so I just…threw it. Heavy as fuck but I managed to damage it enough that they didn't notice the bit I'd blown up. Felt pretty good too."

The story that Evan had initially thought was a rumour suddenly makes much more sense. "Have you ever used it intentionally?"

"What, have I tried to blow something up?" Connor asks sardonically. "Considered it but even I'm not that much of a psycho."

Realising his mistake, Evan quickly says, "N-no. I just meant…how do you know your power is explosions?"

The night after Connor had told Evan off his Power, he'd been curious. His search history had been suspect enough for him to be a little paranoid but he'd been determined to figure out how Connor's Power worked. A bit hypocritical, since Evan had no clue how his own Power worked but at least he liked his. Maybe giving Connor some more information might help him like his Power more.

"I make shit explode," Connor answers shortly. "The printer busted some wires or something and I made the glass shatter. I've broken some more shit too, want a list?"

"No I just…what if what you're doing is breaking bonds between things. Um…wait a second." He brings up one of the websites he'd found that night on his phone. "Have you ever seen any fire?"

Connor frowns, stabbing the dying embers of his blunt into the ground. "Don't think so. I guess there was an electricity spark with the printer."

"Okay, well, maybe what you're doing isn't causing explosions, not exactly. You know how everything is made up of atoms?" Slowly, Connor nods. "Well, what if what you're actually doing is breaking bonds between atoms. Instead of making an explosion you're just…ripping them apart."

"Wouldn't that make it like, disintegrate or something? Atoms are tiny as fuck, right? Anyway, isn't breaking things apart just a different way of putting it?"

"Maybe not atoms then," Evan concedes, "But if what you're doing is breaking stuff apart then maybe you also have the ability to put them back together. Have you ever tried it?"

"To fix stuff?...No. You think I could?"

"I don't know," Even replies honestly. "Maybe. Have you always been angry when you use your Power?"

"I think so."

"Well, I know when I'm angry, or sad, my Power can get kind of unpredictable." It's why panic attacks are his biggest nightmare. Even inside, where you'd think he'd be safe, he isn't. He remembers one day in freshman year where he'd been confronted by two guys who'd wanted a quick popularity increase and so had picked the weakest person they could find to torment. Somehow, weeds had grown through the floor. It was pure luck that they knocked him down onto them, hiding them from view. "Maybe when you break things you're just doing it so quickly, with so much energy, that it looks like an explosion."

"Huh." Connor looks at him appraisingly. "You know Hansen, if you're right, you might just be a fucking genius."

* * *

"You're a fucking genius."

It's Monday afternoon and Connor is waiting for him again but unlike last time it's with a wide grin on his face. In fact, it's the first time Evan has ever seen him smile.

(He ignores the way his heart jumps at the sight.)

"I mean, it wasn't much but when I broke a pencil, I, shit, I _fixed it_. I had to get high as fuck to do it and it broke apart almost instantly again but _I did it_."

Connor's excitement is infectious and Evan's grin matches Connor's. A few daisies appear, fluttering in the wind like celebratory waves. "That's great Connor."

"Lemme show you," Connor says and they spend the remainder of lunch going through the pencils Connor brought with him and then a couple of Evan's own. It's for a worthy cause though because by the end, though still a bit unstable, they're able to write with the newly fixed pencil. Best of all is the giddy flush on Connor's face and the light in his eyes that had been absent before. Evan may not have known Connor long but he already knows what a difference this has made to him. A difference Evan has caused.

"D-do you want to maybe, if you're free, come over to my house some time?" Evan asks as the bell goes, stuttering through his nerves. He's never done this, asked a friend over. At least, not since early middle school. "We could, practice some more, or something."

Connor's excited smile turns a little curious. "I'm grounded till Wednesday, so that day?"

Evan hopes he hasn't scared Connor off by how vehemently he says yes.

* * *

They start of practising with some old newspapers Evan has lying around, almost as a warm up. Once Connor has successfully repaired them all, they move onto bigger things. By the time their pizza arrived, Evan has, for now, a broken radio he got from the arcade, but a repaired frame he knocked over a few weeks ago. As they mock a drama based on a couple with conflicting Powers, Evan realises this is what it must be like to have a real friend.

* * *

"So this is where you've been hiding?"

Evan cuts of mid-sentence and both he and Connor turn to see Jared, hands on his waist, looking a mixture of horrified and hurt. It's at the same time that Jared sees the plants wither away, far too fast to be natural, that Evan realises Jared now knows too.

"You have a Power?" He asks numbly. "And I'm guessing you do too?"

Connor refuses to answer.

"P-please Jared, you can't-you can't tell anyone."

A disgusted look replaces the hurt. "You think I would? I…I need to go."

He spins on his heel, getting out of there. Evan gets ready to run after him, because that was not a good reaction and Jared has a habit of being impulsive, but Connor grabs his sleeve.

"He's not gonna tell anyone," he says with the certainty Evan doesn't feel himself. "You going after him would just bring bad attention. Trust me."

"How can you be sure?"

Connor shrugs. "Something about him. Not sure what."

Though he isn't completely convinced, Evan decides to trust Connor. After all, Jared, despite not knowing what Connor's Power is, could easily reveal his secret and as bad as it was, they would be more likely to believe Jared about Connor than him. Now having been discovered by a second person, Evan thinks that maybe they should stop using their Powers in the grove.

* * *

That evening, Evan hears a banging on his door. His first thought is Jared told and it was the police, come to take him to a secret warehouse laboratory but when he looks through the gap between the curtains he finds it's actually Jared himself.

"Jared, what are you-"

He pushes past Evan, leaving Evan to close the door behind him. He turns to find Jared pacing across the floor, hands wringing and his expression the most uncertain Evan has ever seen it.

"Okay. So, here's the thing. You have Powers. Right. Cool. Fun fact. So do I! And it's like, everything makes sense now. I know we're not exactly friends right now. Not like we were but now you know…man Evan, it was killing me keeping it all secret and did puberty hit you as hard as it hit me because hoo boy it's been a rough time and my dude, I'm sorry. Man, you suck at keeping secrets, how'd you manage it!"

Evan takes a moment to process everything Jared just sped through, until he focuses on the most important thing.

"Wait, so _you_ have powers too?"

Jared pauses in pacing, a smile borderline manic on his face. "Yep. That's what I said and now here we are. A couple of losers with Powers. Plants, of course yours is plants."

"What's yours?" Evan asks even though the way the lights are flickering and Jared seems… _buzzed,_ is a glaring hint. Confirming his suspicions, Jared points to the TV and it turns on by itself, the screen marred by static.

"It's kind of freaking out now like I am because oh man you have no idea how good it feels having someone know about this other than my parents."

Evan can relate and once he's managed to get Jared to calm enough that the lights stop dancing, he takes a moment to think. That's at least 3 kids in one school. The statistics would make you believe it shouldn't be more than one but then, when there's no obvious way to tell if someone has a Power, no genetic test and so many reasons to keep quiet…it would make sense there were so many of them hiding. So many people who had no alone, who felt like they had no one to talk to.

While he and Jared sit through what is perhaps the most honest conversation they've ever had, a plan begins to form in Evan's mind.

* * *

Once finished, Evan let's Connor know of his plan. It's then Jared who suggests they bring Alana into the loop as well, when none of them have any idea of where to start. They're both weary at first, they're certain Alana doesn't have a Power, but she surprises all of them with the enthusiasm she shows.

"It's all part of a bigger picture," Alana explains while they're all sat in Evan's living room. "These kids, you guys, you feel like you're the only ones out there. You have a secret you really can't afford to tell anyone and that's a lot of pressure to have. It can lead to a whole host of issues. How many of those evil 'villains' we see on TV would actually be that way if you weren't forced into hiding? No, we need to change things, we need to give people a place where they can talk about it, where they can know that they're not alone, that someone knows they exist and only wants to help."

After Alana comes Zoe, who's relationship with her brother has dramatically improved. Turns out photo frames aren't the only thing Connor's been trying to repair. She doesn't have Power but she does have synaesthesia. While far more accepted than Powers, she can sympathise with feeling strange and having few people who can really relate to her.

And then, the 'Come to Light' project is born, advertised as an anonymous helpline for kids who have Powers and need someone to talk to. There's no need to sign up and with Jared's help, they manage to ensure that everything is kept anonymous, even their own identities. Despite none of them being qualified, they all take shifts. They're job isn't to give advice, it's to be there to listen which is more than any of them had a few months ago.

It's a slow start, no one certain they won't get caught, but soon enough it gathers the trust of a few brave individuals who then spread the word. Jared manages to hack into different systems across America to spread the message and Alana arranges times for them to all be on duty, managing the text function Jared built. When it finally hits the media, there's an influx that they struggle to keep up with but then celebrities start to get involved. New, anonymous, branches get set up and soon, these kids have their pick of who they can go to for help, people to listen or people who are now qualified to help.

It may leave him with bruises under his eyes, a heart that aches for all the lonely kids out there, but it will forever be Evan's greatest creation.

* * *

"Imagine what would have happened if you didn't push me over that day," Evan muses, one night after he and Connor have finished their shift. They're currently sat on his bed, shoulder to shoulder, sharing a tub of ice cream as they unwind.

Connor rolls his eyes. "You can stop bringing that up now."

Evan twists on his side a little, looking directly at Connor. "You know I forgive you. I forgave you ages ago."

Connor sighs. "Too damn nice you are Hansen."

"But you don't mind," Evan says, the smile on his face drawing out one from Connor.

"Who says," he teases and then his expression softens. "Nah. I'm glad."

It's not the first time Evan has been so aware of how close he and Connor are sitting, so aware of how Connor looks when he's truly happy. He's beautiful and suddenly, Evan wants to finally do something about it.

"I want to-"

"Is it okay if-"

They stop; laugh a little, and then by mutual agreement, get that bit closer.

When they kiss, roses start to wind around the bedframe and Connor needs to replace a lightbulb.

* * *

 _I know it's kind of a mishmash of stuff but I got the prompt and it fit in nicely with one of my original works actually so I sort of mashed the two together, using this to help me with plot points for that. I hoped you liked it anyway! Consider leaving a review if you did :)_


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